The present invention relates generally to microelectronics and more particularly, to a structure and method of retaining stress in fins of fin field-effect transistors (finFETs).
Intrinsic stress in a fin of a finFET may boost mobility of charge carriers, and thus, increase performance of the finFET. Cutting an intrinsically stressed semiconductor layer to form fins may reduce the intrinsic stress in a fin compared to the semiconductor layer. A reduction in stress from cutting a fin may result in lost finFET performance.